Empowering residents Priority for Parker-Edgecombe

Small business entrepreneurship and the empowerment of existing small businesses throughout West Grand Bahama and Bimini, will determine whether those areas move forward or become stagnated, said the Member of Parliament responsible for those constituencies, Pakesia Parker-Edgecombe.

In her recent communication to the House of Assembly, the Parliamentary Secretary for Communications and Information in the Office of the Prime Minister noted that every effort to get persons operating from, “their trunks and in some instances – homes – with proper licensing will be initiated, through our Licensed to Succeed Initiative.”

Another important initiative focused on empowering residents in West Grand Bahama and Bimini will be the ‘Stay in School’ Program.

Parker-Edgecombe noted that a number of Back-to-School events are held annually, prior to the new school year.
“However, many of us send our children back to school, but very few demand that they stay there. Our country continues to be plagued by young men and women dropping out of high school. We must combat it and reiterate the importance of staying in school and more importantly, graduating.”

She disclosed that in partnership with the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., “one of the many initiatives, ‘Ascend,’ where students – male and female – from Grade 9 to 12 will learn about the job front, obtaining a higher education and becoming young budding entrepreneurs.

“Additionally, we will also introduce the Little Speakers’ Club for students ages eight to 13, where we will teach them the art of communication.”

Speaking to a growing, troubling issue among young people – the lack of conflict resolution – Parker-Edgecombe noted that conflict resolution begins with being able to communicate effectively.

“The inability by many of our young people to communication, has resulted in them acting out of frustration, leading to violence.

“So, we will focus of communication as a means to resolve issues.”

The MP highlighted several other areas, including the Parent-to-Parent Program and a clean environment campaign, which she noted is an important factor in attracting investors.

She stated that no longer will “garbage” be accepted anywhere, other than a dump site or a bin.

“Garbage collectors will be held responsible for lack of pickups and if incapable of performing their jobs, a call for contracts to be taken will be echoed, loudly.”

She advised residents to keep their surroundings clean.

“As we move forward, residents can expect two fully functional constituency offices – one in Bimini and one for West Grand Bahama – where they are more than welcomed to come from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.